Kappa Delta Pi elects new president; leadership council

Chartered in 1929, Kappa Delta Pi's Beta Kappa chapter at the University of Georgia, recently elected a new president and leadership council to help foster excellence in education and promote fellowship among graduate students dedicated to teaching.

Kappa Delta Pi (KDP) is an international honor society in education that supports and advances educators throughout their teaching careers. Graduate students in the society gain access to a wide variety of programs, services and resources both on campus and within the larger education community.

Last May, doctoral student Kellie Templeman was elected as president of KDP for a one-year term. Templeman, who is currently pursuing a PhD in educational psychology with a focus on applied cognition and development, will assist with fundraising opportunities, budgeting, event planning and serving as an ambassador for KDP.

"This honor society is very important to me because it is an organization with such a rich and vibrant history in the field of education," said Templeman. "As a graduate student, it has allowed me to foster professional and personal connections with other students and faculty throughout the College."

KDP members are required to maintain a cumulative graduate GPA of 3.25 and have at least 12 credit hours in education coursework. The organization is not program specific, so members are encouraged to network and discuss research topics with other professionals in the field.

"Oftentimes, graduate students only care about their specific program, and they're not aware that there's another entity on campus that will support their work," said Louis Castenell, KDP's faculty advisor and a professor in the department of educational psychology. "One of the things that we promote on campus and within the College is interdisciplinary work, so members learn and teach each other, and it just makes them more comprehensive in their research interest."

In addition to hosting a biannual conference for professional educators, students and faculty members, KDP offers yearly scholarship and grant opportunities, as well as face-to-face and virtual professional training and education seminars for graduate students.

"I'm excited to facilitate and connect students from different areas of the College that may not regularly interact with each other," said Templeman. "KDP is an international honor society and there are chapters, active members and alumni all over the world, which puts a large network of professional connections at your fingertips."

Graduate students interested in attending future meetings and activities hosted by the organization, including a monthly brown bag seminar series, can find more information on KDP's Facebook page.

2016-2017 KDP Leadership Council

• President: Kellie Templeman, PhD '17, educational psychology (applied cognition and development)
• Vice president: Megan Brock, PhD '17, educational psychology (applied cognition and development)
• Secretary: Erin Horan, PhD '17, educational psychology (applied cognition and development)
• Treasurer: Hyejin Park, PhD '17, mathematics education
• Faculty advisor: Louis Castenell, professor, department of educational psychology